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Oh, man, it is hot. The distance between my apartment and my job is about a 15-min. bike ride. By the time I arrived in my office, I looked like the heat and I had gone a few rounds. Luckily, I'm the only person in my office on Mondays so I had the chance to make myself presentable.
Isn't that the love/hate relationship withwarm hot weather? In Chicago, it takes so long for the sun to come back after winter that it seems I spend half the year wishing for its return. But man, when the sun does come back, it comes back full throttle (we don't really have a spring in Chicago). This week looks like it's going to be a scorcher (in the 90s with unbelievable humidity and did I mention my office does not have air conditioning? Yeah...).
Here are my essentials for beating the heat:
one || water. drink lots of it and often. I recently bought this pitcher from Target, and it's so awesome. I like to cut up lemons or oranges to give some citrus flavor to my water, and this pitcher makes the whole process so easy by keeping the fruit separate. Bonus: it's awful pretty. When I'm on the go, I always have a water bottle handy to make staying hydrated a no-brainer. I currently use this one and this one.
two || a hat. pick a hat, any hat. I have a giant head, so hats are often tricky for me, but I've had the most luck with baseball caps. Choose one bearing your favorite team, or go for an ultra simple one like this one.
three || yogurt. the hotter it gets outside, the less appealing a heavy meal becomes. I eat fresher and better in the summer, availing of the abundance of produce, but sometimes I want a lighter protein alternative, so I keep a couple of yogurts around (I like pineapple Chobanis - each 6 oz. cup of this Greek yogurt has 13g of protein).
four || sunscreen. this is a no brainer. I like Neutrogena's line of suncare products - the spray is refreshing and convenient while the lotion is never greasy.
five || when I'm not at work, my summer uniform consists of a tank/tee, shorts, and sneakers. that's about as summer as it gets. I have lived in this tee since I bought it a couple of weeks ago, and I've worn Converse for years (I'm also eyeing a pair of Supergas).
six || books. things tend to slow down a little in the summer, and I like to take advantage of that by squeezing in some books. I still love the feel of pages in my hand, but on the go, nothing beats electronic books.
seven || a backpack. a more relaxed and often roomier alternative to the crossbody. pick one with a pattern or cute details to keep it from looking too much like you're going to school.
eight || a bike. it's a great way to get around for short trips (who wants to get into a hot car when you're just going to grab some eggs from the grocery store three blocks down?), is faster than walking, and is built-in-exercise. Plus, there's just something about bikes that says "dog days of summer".
What are your summer essentials?
Oh, man, it is hot. The distance between my apartment and my job is about a 15-min. bike ride. By the time I arrived in my office, I looked like the heat and I had gone a few rounds. Luckily, I'm the only person in my office on Mondays so I had the chance to make myself presentable.
Isn't that the love/hate relationship with
Here are my essentials for beating the heat:
one || water. drink lots of it and often. I recently bought this pitcher from Target, and it's so awesome. I like to cut up lemons or oranges to give some citrus flavor to my water, and this pitcher makes the whole process so easy by keeping the fruit separate. Bonus: it's awful pretty. When I'm on the go, I always have a water bottle handy to make staying hydrated a no-brainer. I currently use this one and this one.
two || a hat. pick a hat, any hat. I have a giant head, so hats are often tricky for me, but I've had the most luck with baseball caps. Choose one bearing your favorite team, or go for an ultra simple one like this one.
three || yogurt. the hotter it gets outside, the less appealing a heavy meal becomes. I eat fresher and better in the summer, availing of the abundance of produce, but sometimes I want a lighter protein alternative, so I keep a couple of yogurts around (I like pineapple Chobanis - each 6 oz. cup of this Greek yogurt has 13g of protein).
four || sunscreen. this is a no brainer. I like Neutrogena's line of suncare products - the spray is refreshing and convenient while the lotion is never greasy.
five || when I'm not at work, my summer uniform consists of a tank/tee, shorts, and sneakers. that's about as summer as it gets. I have lived in this tee since I bought it a couple of weeks ago, and I've worn Converse for years (I'm also eyeing a pair of Supergas).
six || books. things tend to slow down a little in the summer, and I like to take advantage of that by squeezing in some books. I still love the feel of pages in my hand, but on the go, nothing beats electronic books.
seven || a backpack. a more relaxed and often roomier alternative to the crossbody. pick one with a pattern or cute details to keep it from looking too much like you're going to school.
eight || a bike. it's a great way to get around for short trips (who wants to get into a hot car when you're just going to grab some eggs from the grocery store three blocks down?), is faster than walking, and is built-in-exercise. Plus, there's just something about bikes that says "dog days of summer".
What are your summer essentials?
